Texas Self Storage Association | Legal Resources & Legislature Information

The Starfish: Making a Difference
An old man walked along a shore littered with thousands of starfish, beached
and dying after a storm.
A young girl was picking them up and flinging them back into the ocean. "Why do you bother?"
the old man asked. "You're not saving enough to make a difference." The young girl picked up another starfish, sent it spinning back to the water and said, "It made a difference to that one."

Commitment/Contribution Form • Sample Press Release • Starfish Graphic

TSSA Challenges Members to Make a Difference

Since 2001, TSSA members have made a difference in the lives of children through their contributions to the Shriners Children’s Burn Hospital in Galveston. Proceeds from the TSSA charitable auction and poker tournaments held at the annual convention now total over $200,000. In 2009, more than $32,000 was raised through the charity poker tournament, auctions and donations at the annual convention.

Once again, we would like to ask you to join us in a fundraising effort that will hopefully increase the financial contributions we make to this cause, and raise awareness of the positive role that self-storage owners play in their community.

Banding together to support a common cause will shine a brighter light on a united effort. We hope you will join us in this state-wide effort to Make a Difference.

Just as the little girl in the story who keeps reaching out and doing what she can to make a difference, we’re asking you to reach out to your customers. It will be a wonderful sight to have a wall covered with this symbol of how each of us Make a Difference.

• Ask your customers to make a $1 contribution

• They get to print their name on the Starfish (downloaded from www.txssa.org.)

• You display it in your facility

• TSSA will acknowledge every participating facility at the annual convention, in the Self-Storage News magazine, the TSSA website, and the monthly e-mail update to the membership.

If you don’t think you can ask your customers to donate, will you consider making a $5 donation? As one of our board members stated, “If we all give a little, we can do a lot.” Please consider joining us in the TSSA Make a Difference campaign.

Participating is as easy as this:
1. Sign and return the Commitment Form to TSSA

2. Download and make copies of the Starfish (or call TSSA at 888-259-4902 and we’ll mail them to you); collect as many starfish donations as possible between now and September 20, 2010

3. Take a picture of you and your TSSA Make a Difference wall of honor

4. Send the money collected, along with the picture, to TSSA

5. Personalize the Sample Press Release and send it to your local newspaper.